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Saturday, 1 October 2011

SSS '11: Days 29 & 30 THE END!!!!!

'Tis the final installment in this month of self-stitched craziness. Thanks so mucb to anyone who has followed my progress this month, however vaguely. And MASSIVE thanks to those how left comments along the way, the support is supremely appreciated.

Day 29:

What I wore:

Me-made stripey boat neck T-shirt, navy sateen skirt and pants. Thrifted red cardi occurred briefly but it was far too hot (in the temperature sense!). I FINALLY cut off the anchor buttons I'd stitched to the shoulders of this top, they were just too painful when carrying a heavy shoulder bag, which I do everyday.

Thoughts:

So on Day 29 my boss and I travelled to deepest North London to visit the warehouse where all the donated textiles and crap get sorted and processed for the charity we work for. It was a fascinating day and I'll probably blog about the process in the future so won't go into it here. Anyways, whilst we were there we had to sorted through crates and boxes of fabric that had been donated to figure out what we could use and what we couldn't. I cannot understate how dusty and dirty the environment in that warehouse it, plus it was a scorcher so I got really sweaty (hmmm, nice!). Seriously, I haven't felt that clammy since leaving Spain! Anyways, we had a staff social event to attend after so I changed my top:

I am now wearing my tie-collar shirt blouse with the same skirt. Sorry for the ridiculous photo, it was all the documenting I could manage at 11pm on the train home!

Day 30:

What I wore:

For the final day I decided to evoke the spirit of Frida in my Frida Kahlo dress (plus me-made pants and thrifted red cardi, of course).

Thoughts:

I really don't wear this dress very often, I think this was only it's third outting. It takes an extra slice of 'I don't care if anyone stares at my dress' determination which is sometimes difficult to muster first thing in the morning. Even my boss temporarily loses her sense of liberalism and eyes it questioningly when I wander in wearing it. But it is so much fun to wear so it will see more action that is currently does.

So there we go! Another me-made/self-stitched month has whizzed by almost before I've got a handle on the fact it's even begun. Once again, the Flickr group has been an absolute joy to witness. So many lovely people sharing their inspirational outfits and fascinating snapshots into their diverse lives. Plus so much support for each other, honestly, if I could bottle that and distribute it, we could end war with the stuff!!! The Facebook group was also a surprise success. To be honest, I didn't get to spend much time there personally, but it's obvious that many preferred that format for participating in this challenge, so having those options was great. I did see some really beautiful images over there that weren't on the Flickr group and vice versa.

There is little I can say about this challenge from a community perspective that I haven't said before in summary to the previous me-made and self-stitched months. It really is so heartening to see people wearing their creations, being proud of them and themselves, looking incredible and showing their individual personalities. I take my hat off to them all and hope that they have got a lot from the experience as I'm sure those following their progress, such as myself, also have.

From a personal view point, it's been an interesting month. One year ago, I participated in Self-Stitched-September '10 with a skeleton wardrobe and under trying circumstances. A year on I am personally more stable and have a year's worth of additional self-stitched garments that I feel reflect me pretty well in this stage of my life. This month I have had a lot more ammunition to work with so I challenged myself to wear a different outfit/combo of garms each day to get me out of my rut of usually reaching for the tried and tested outfits each morning. I succeeded in this element of my personal challenge and in the process learnt a lot about what goes together and what doesn't, plus I've got the body of 30 photos to squeeze out any more of those lessons which may still need absorbing. In fact, I reckon I could keep going creating new combinations of clothing for a couple of weeks if I tried. I also have two dresses that I didn't get round to wearing because the weather really warmed up during the last week.

I made a couple of new garments for myself during the challenge, including a new jacket which I have yet to wear and photograph because of the recent heat wave. Watch this space for that, I'll get some photos today. But thing I failed to do that I said I would at the beginning of this challenge was to make a garment to wear whilst jogging and to use it before the month was out. I have cut it out and am in the process of constructing a long-sleeved running top with snazzy special pocket detail. I could have rushed and got it finished before the month was out, but this warm weather would was prevented me wearing it, so there seemed little point in that.

What else can I say? Well, I can address the future of these challenges I guess. As I said previously, SSS '11 was the last me-made self-stitched challenge I'll be hosting this year. The end of the year always seems to snowball with so much going on and I wouldn't want to host something I couldn't devote enough time and effort to. The three challenges I've hosted this year (Me-Made-March '11, Me-Made-June '11 and Self-Stitched-September '11) all had their different flavours which was due to the different weather going on in various countries for those months, and the different collectives of participants who signed up for the different challenges. It's not set in stone, but for next year I'm currently erring towards hosting just one challenge. Just think, all that awesomeness condensed into one incredible month?! I know whatever month I pick it won't be everyone's 'favourite' but I really can't help that. I'm thinking May. One giant Me-Made-May '12. If anyone is thinking of participating next year, there would be only one chance to stand up to be challenged. I think it could be the stuff legends are made from!

thanks so much for hosting SSS 2011, and I love the Frida dress. The central flower on the bodice and the lace (?) trimmed hem make such an impact.I was a SSS 2011 participant, and I wore at least two self made items every day, but I didn't get too many pictures taken, but I did keep up a spreadsheet with each days outfits listed. (Yes - severe computer geek, here).

I also participated in SSS 2010 just after I had gotten back into sewing after a long break, and this month I managed a lot more self stitched items, including wearing all self stitched sleepwear and loungewear, so it has been fun making those.

Zoe, thank you so much for hosting this challenge yet again! You do a wonderful service to the self-stitched world, and it is such great fun to get with like-minded people, who truly care about creating their own like we all do... thank you!And you yourself did a sterling job, your outfits are always so well co-ordinated and all your items seem to mix and match so effortlessly. you have a very co-hesive look, which works beautifully with your colouring and (I think) your personality. A fabulous month!!

I love the dress, it's really cheerful and looks like something to make the day feel brighter, even if you don't feel it!

Thanks for organising. It's the first I've taken part in and really enjoyed it. I can't wait for next May, I reckon I'll have made a few more things by then, plus I'll hopefully be in a completely different continent!!

I'm joining the "I like you in the Frida dress" crowd. The dress has personality, but it doesn't look weird. People are probably looking and wondering how they, too, can have such a unique clothing item (and what all the pictures are).

I had a wonderful time this past month. Thanks for hosting SSS'11. It was definitely a challenge for me, and taking pictures every day is a bit of a pain, but I loved the community and the spirit of it. Your garments are all very inspirational, and I look forward to seeing what this next year has in store for you!

I am particularly envious of your Frida Dress. I say stuff'em, let them look, not everyone can have your style and pull it off. Life is short, wear your favourite clothes all the time! I loved watching your SSS'11 and joining in on this challenge myself.

I'm very similar to you, last year it really felt a stretch, but this year I have heaps of self stitched stuff, that's versatile to weather extremes and for my busy lifestyle. I'm going to write up my thoughts this week on the month, to reflect what I've gained... but I wonder if you'd consider a selfstitched YEAR? xoxo

I'm very glad you're hosting these me-made challenges, even though I couldn't participate this time around - living in scrubs for 3 weeks really does crimp your style a bit... ;) I've branched out, though, and I'm doing self-stitched weekends now! :)

Hey Zoe! I have a question for you since you used to live in Spain. Maybe you can help me with something. And since I could not find an email address on your blog, would you mind contacting me atAllStyleAndAllSubstance AT gmail ? Thank you! xo Adriennep.s.: It's really too bad you don't wear your Frida dress more often. It doesn't seem THAT loud to me. It's just a fun, cute dress! But in another sense I understand. I've worn my Lobster dress maybe 3 times because I feel self-conscious in it. You have to be in a mood to attract attention and to get reactions from people, which is not that often in my case.

Zoe, thanks so much for hosting SSS again. It's pretty amazing that you have united so many different people into a mini-movement! It's always eye-opening both in terms of what I end up wearing, and seeing other people's outfits.

Speaking of which, I agree with Jessica, it is quite likely that people are staring at the Frida dress with interest, because the dress is not only unusual, it is also pretty. Maybe we all need to challenge ourselves to wear our unusual dresses more!

Thanks Zoe for SSS'11. During the course of the month I learned that I have made lots of clothes that I didn't get around to wear, and that I really should put more thought into picking my outfits each day (instead of whatever is clean). I had a great time. Looking forward to MMM'12!!

p.s. the Friday dress is awesome! I only wish I could wear something like that to the office!

I didn't participate in SSS'11 this year (since I was recovering from a bad haircut and my hair was too short), but your self-stitched months definitely tell me what I do and don't wear from my closet, and also keep my sewing projects practical. Looking forward to joining the next one!

I think mmmay sounds really good, I have not yet participated as I have not had enough garments to wear yet, plus I wear a uniform in my day job so I don't really get much variety. By then I may have enough clothing :)